The German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) announced that hackers infiltrated the networks of a German steel mill and caused the damage to the mill’s blast furnace. The BSI said the hack could have been avoided had the industrial control systems that controlled the furnace not been connected to the Internet.

Following up on a story I mentioned two weeks ago, the Irish government backed Microsoft’s claim that the United States cannot compel the software giant to hand over data held on its servers in Ireland without first seeking the Irish government’s permission. Microsoft, with the support of many of the IT industry and now the Irish government, is appealing a July ruling from a U.S. court which compelled it to provide data related to a drug case despite the fact that the data is held outside of the United States.